Shooting target

ABSTRACT

A shooting target is disclosed herein. The shooting target includes a plurality of containers that are filled with a colored liquid. The shooting target also includes a front surface that conceals the plurality of containers so that they are not visible when looking at a front side of the shooting target. When someone shoots a projectile at the shooting target, the projectile may puncture the front surface and one or more of the liquid-filled containers, releasing the liquid from the containers and causing the liquid to ooze onto and mark the front surface of the shooting target.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/708,904, filed Oct. 2, 2012, for a “Shooting Target,” with inventor Jim Fife.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to shooting. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a shooting target.

BACKGROUND

Shooting is an activity that is enjoyed by many people in the world today. In general terms, shooting is the act or process of firing guns or other projectile weapons (e.g., bows or crossbows). Often, weapons are aimed at a particular target, particularly in recreational shooting.

One type of shooting target that is commonly used includes a number of concentric circles. This type of shooting target is often referred to as a “bull's-eye target,” where the term “bull's-eye” refers to the innermost circle(s) within the target. When a bull's-eye target is utilized, shooters typically attempt to fire a projectile so that it hits the bull's-eye.

SUMMARY

A shooting target is disclosed herein. The shooting target includes a plurality of containers that are filled with a colored liquid. The shooting target also includes a front surface that conceals the plurality of containers so that they are not visible when looking at a front side of the shooting target. When someone shoots a projectile at the shooting target, the projectile may puncture the front surface and one or more of the liquid-filled containers, releasing the liquid from the containers and causing the liquid to ooze onto and mark the front surface of the shooting target.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates the front side of a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure, the shooting target being without its front surface, and the shooting target including a plurality of containers that are filled with a colored liquid.

FIG. 2 illustrates the front side of the shooting target of FIG. 1, with the shooting target including its front surface, which conceals the containers.

FIG. 3 illustrates the shooting target shown in FIG. 2, after the shooting target has been struck by a projectile.

FIG. 4 illustrates another shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure, the shooting target being shaped like an animal.

FIG. 5 illustrates another shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure, the shooting target being without its front surface, and the liquid-filled containers within the shooting target being arranged so as to facilitate a competitive game.

FIG. 6 illustrates the shooting target shown in FIG. 5, the shooting target including its front surface, and the shooting target being depicted after it has been struck by several projectiles.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A shooting target 100 in accordance with the present disclosure will be described in connection with FIGS. 1-3.

FIG. 1 illustrates the front side of the shooting target 100. As used herein, the “front side” of a shooting target is the side at which projectiles are typically fired. The shooting target 100 includes a plurality of containers 102 that are filled with a colored liquid. In FIG. 1, the shooting target 100 is shown without its front surface 104. FIG. 2 illustrates the shooting target 100 with its front surface 104. When in place, the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100 conceals the liquid-filled containers 102, so that they are not visible when looking at the front side of the shooting target 100.

When someone shoots a projectile at the shooting target 100, the projectile may puncture the front surface 104 and one or more of the liquid-filled containers 102, releasing the liquid from the containers 102 and causing the liquid to ooze onto and mark the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100. FIG. 3 shows the shooting target 100 after this has happened. A marking 112 is visible on the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100.

The liquid in the liquid-filled containers 102 may have a different color than the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100. The color of the front surface 104 may be such that it provides a strong contrast to the color of the liquid in the liquid-filled containers 102. For example, the liquid inside the liquid-filled containers 102 may be colored red, and the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100 may be colored white. In this example, when the liquid oozes and marks the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100, this may cause the shooting target 100 to have the appearance of bleeding. However, the color of the liquid in the liquid-filled containers 102 may be something other than red, and the color of the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100 may be something other than white.

There are many different types of colored liquids that may be used inside the containers 102. For example, the colored liquid may be paint (i.e., the liquid-filled containers 102 may be paintballs). Other examples of colored liquid that could be used include colored gelatin, colored water, etc.

In the shooting target 100 that is shown in FIGS. 1-3, the liquid-filled containers 102 are placed inside of the shooting target 100 via a plurality of cells 106. In other words, the shooting target 100 comprises a plurality of cells 106, each container 102 is placed inside one of the cells 106, and a film 104 is placed over the cells 106. The film 104 may serve as the front surface 104 of the shooting target 100. The film 104 may be made of paper or plastic. When someone shoots a projectile at the shooting target 100, the projectile may puncture the film 104 and one or more of the liquid-filled containers 102, releasing the liquid from the container(s) 102 and causing the liquid to ooze onto and mark the film 104 (as shown in FIG. 3).

In a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure, the manner in which the liquid-filled containers are placed inside of the shooting target may be different than in the shooting target 100 shown in FIGS. 1-3. For example, a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure may be filled with some type of material (e.g., straw), and the liquid-filled containers may be embedded within this material. As another example, the shooting target may be substantially filled with liquid, and there may be different chambers within the shooting target. In such a shooting target, the liquid-filled containers may be the different chambers inside of the shooting target that are filled with liquid.

The shooting target 100 shown in FIGS. 1-3 has an octagonal shape. However, a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure may have a different shape. For example, a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure may be shaped like an animal, an alien, a monster, etc.

In the shooting target 100 shown in FIGS. 1-3, the liquid-filled containers 102 are spread throughout the shooting target 100, adjacent to one another. This is because the cells 106 are also spread throughout the shooting target 100, adjacent to one another (in a honeycomb pattern), and the liquid-filled containers 102 are placed inside of the cells 106. However, in another shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure, the liquid-filled containers may be arranged in a different type of pattern.

For example, as mentioned, a shooting target in accordance with the present disclosure may be shaped like an animal. FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a shooting target 400 that is shaped like an animal (more specifically, a deer). The shooting target 400 includes liquid-filled containers 402 that are arranged within the shooting target 400 so that they are confined to a defined zone 408 of the shooting target 400. In other words, the liquid-filled containers 402 may be located within the defined zone 408, and not located elsewhere within the shooting target 400. This defined zone 408 may correspond to the animal's “kill zone.” In other words, the defined zone 408 in the animal-shaped shooting target 400 may correspond to an area of a real animal in which the impact of a high-speed projectile would cause the animal to be killed (e.g., an area close to the heart). The dotted lines within FIG. 4 are intended to represent the area of the shooting target 400 within the defined zone 408 being “cut away,” in order to reveal the liquid-filled containers 402 that are located within this defined zone 408.

Alternatively, the liquid-filled containers within a shooting target may be arranged so as to facilitate a competitive game. FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate an example of this type of shooting target 500. FIG. 5 illustrates the shooting target 500 without the front surface 504. FIG. 6 illustrates the shooting target 500 with the front surface 504, after several projectiles have struck the target 500 and liquid has been released from the corresponding containers 502.

In the shooting target 500 that is shown in FIGS. 5-6, the competitive game is tic-tac-toe. The shooting target 500 is divided into nine sections 510 (like a traditional tic-tac-toe board). Within each section 510, the containers 502 are arranged into two patterns: an “X” pattern (as shown by the dotted lines in the upper-left corner of FIG. 5) and an “O” pattern (as shown by the dotted lines in the center of FIG. 5). As shown in FIG. 6, a player may mark a particular section 510 with an “X” or an “O” by shooting the containers 502 that correspond to the desired pattern.

Alternatively, the liquid-filled containers within a shooting target may be arranged so as to facilitate a different type of competitive game, such as a speed shooting game, a game in which different locations on the shooting target are supposed to be hit in a particular order, etc.

A shooting target as described herein may be used in connection with any type of gun, including an air gun, a firearm, etc.

As used herein, the term “air gun” refers to any rifle, pistol, or shotgun that fires one or more projectile(s) by means of compressed air or other gas. The projectiles may be metallic or plastic. Examples of metallic projectiles include BBs and pellets. Air guns that use only plastic projectiles are typically referred to as airsoft guns.

As used herein, the term “firearm” refers to any weapon that launches one or more projectile(s) at high velocity through confined burning of a propellant. Examples of firearms include handguns, rifles, shotguns, etc.

A shooting target as described herein may also be used in connection with a bow (or crossbow) and arrow. An arrow is an example of a projectile, as that term is used herein.

The claims are not limited to the specific implementations described above. Various modifications, changes and variations may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the implementations described herein without departing from the scope of the claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A shooting target, comprising: a plurality of containers that are filled with a colored liquid; and a front surface that conceals the plurality of containers so that they are not visible when looking at a front side of the shooting target; wherein the liquid within a particular container is released when the front surface and the container are punctured by a projectile; and wherein the front surface is marked by the liquid when the liquid is released from the container.
 2. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein: the liquid has a first color; and the front surface has a second color that is different than the first color.
 3. The shooting target of claim 2, wherein: the liquid is colored red; and the front surface is colored white.
 4. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein the colored liquid is selected from the group consisting of paint, colored gelatin, and colored water.
 5. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein: the shooting target comprises a plurality of cells; each container from among the plurality of containers is placed inside one of the plurality of cells; and the front surface comprises a film that is placed over the plurality of cells.
 6. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein the plurality of containers are spread throughout the shooting target, adjacent to one another.
 7. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein: the shooting target is shaped like an animal; and the containers are arranged within the shooting target so that the containers are confined to a defined zone of the shooting target.
 8. The shooting target of claim 7, wherein the defined zone corresponds to a kill zone of the animal.
 9. The shooting target of claim 1, wherein the containers are arranged within the shooting target so as to facilitate a competitive game. 